How to 3x Your Career | Jason Mayden on Impact Theory

The video is about Jason Mayden's journey from growing up in Chicago to becoming a successful designer at Nike and eventually starting his own company, and how his mentality and work ethic played a crucial role in his success.

The video is an interview with Jason Mayden, a former Nike designer who is now the CEO of Super Heroic Inc. Mayden shares his story of growing up on the south side of Chicago and dreaming of designing shoes for Michael Jordan. Despite facing rejection and unimaginable violence, Mayden persisted and eventually landed a design internship with Nike, becoming the first African American to do so. He went on to design shoes for numerous athletes and celebrities, but eventually left Nike to start his own company focused on creating quality play products for kids. Mayden attributes his success to his work ethic, humility, and willingness to ask for help.

• Jason Mayden grew up in Chicago and dreamed of designing shoes for Nike.
• He persisted and became the first African American to get a design internship with Nike.
• He designed shoes for famous athletes and left Nike after 14 years to co-found Super Heroic Inc.
• Mayden believes in having a strong work ethic and mindset to achieve greatness.
• Michael Jordan's mentality influenced Mayden's approach to life and work.
• Mayden believes in creating a legacy and platform for others through entrepreneurship.
• He learned work ethic and principles from his father and applies them to his craft.
• Mayden sees suffering as a way to develop new skills and keep himself humble.
• He believes in being interdisciplinary, constantly improving, and focusing on joyfulness and thankfulness.

How to 3x Your Career | Jason Mayden on Impact Theory - YouTube

Jason Mayden's Journey

• Jason Mayden grew up on the south side of Chicago amid unimaginable violence.
• He dreamed of one day working at Nike designing shoes for Michael Jordan.
• He persisted and after several rejections, he got a design internship with Nike, becoming the first African American to do so.
• He went on to design shoes for Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, Eminem, and Michael Jordan.
• He left Nike after 14 years and is now the CEO of Super Heroic Inc, a company focused on creating quality play products for kids.

Work Ethic and Mentality

• Jason Mayden believes that having potential is not the same as actually doing something with it.
• He believes that anyone can be great, and his mindset is always that anybody can be great.
• He thinks about how he can be the greatest and that takes a huge amount of introspection, self-reflection, and honesty.
• It takes humility to be the greatest, and he asks for help in order to be the greatest.
• He believes that the separation between where he wants to go and where he is, is his work ethic.

Michael Jordan's Influence

• Jason Mayden believes that Michael Jordan's mentality influenced him a hundred percent.
• He saw Michael Jordan as a living legend at the height of his prime.
• Michael Jordan never made excuses and understood the difference between a response and a reaction.
• Michael Jordan was a very calculated analytical person and contributed off the court by giving a tangible example of what it means to overcome every single obstacle possible.
• Jason Mayden grew up in an era where he saw great athletes like Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson, and Deion Sanders as multi-dimensional people.

How to 3x Your Career | Jason Mayden on Impact Theory - YouTube

Entrepreneurial Journey

• Jason Mayden left Nike after 14 years and co-founded Super Heroic Inc, a company focused on creating quality play products for kids.
• He believes that his entrepreneurial journey is about creating a legacy for his family and community.
• He believes that his journey is about creating a platform for others to stand on.
• He believes that his journey is about creating a better world for his children and the next generation.
• He believes that his journey is about creating a world where everyone has access to the tools and resources they need to succeed.

Work Ethic and Principles

• Jason Mayden learned work ethic, ideals, and principles from his father.
• He applied these principles to his craft in design.
• He believes in being the best in his industry.
• He believes in constantly improving and learning.
• He believes in being humble and not settling for mediocrity.

Dealing with Suffering

• Jason Mayden encountered suffering at a young age when he was hospitalized with septicemia.
• He played with terminally ill children in the hospital and realized that there is always someone going through more than you.
• He looks at suffering as a way to keep him humble and develop new skills.
• He believes that going through difficult circumstances is necessary to realize your greatness.
• He believes that you can't have a testimony without a test.

Influence of Hip-Hop

• Jason Mayden was an avid reader of comic books as a child.
• He was influenced by the short, punchy statements in comic books.
• He models his speaking style after his favorite emcee, Nas.
• He believes that hip-hop is a reflection of society and uses it to reflect his own ideals and principles.
• He believes that language is powerful and can make people feel a certain way.

Being Interdisciplinary

• Jason Mayden believes that curiosity is the key to being interdisciplinary.
• He believes that people are limited by the labels that others place on them.
• He believes that being multi-disciplinary and curious is what makes people great.
• He believes in constantly improving and not settling for mediocrity.
• He believes in utilizing every day to be great and not wasting the gift of life.

Work Ethic and Mentality

• Excellence comes from consistently doing small things well over time.
• The person who runs the hardest and doesn't quit wins.
• Pushing oneself and breaking down insecurities builds confidence and skill set.
• Focus on what you want to see in the world, bias towards joyfulness and thankfulness.
• Overcoming negative circumstances and biases to achieve goals.

Balance of Darkness and Light

• There is duality to everything, including extreme darkness and joyfulness.
• Focus on serving others and acknowledging their existence to balance out darkness.
• Eliminate ways people can tell you no by identifying weaknesses and gaps in skillset.
• Learn from others and add personal layers to differentiate oneself.
• Build relationships outside of one's discipline to interface with decision makers.

Strategies for Success

• Methodical approach to life, thinking five steps ahead like chess.
• Identify weaknesses and gaps in skillset to eliminate ways people can tell you no.
• Learn from others and add personal layers to differentiate oneself.
• Build relationships outside of one's discipline to interface with decision makers.
• Focus on what you want to see in the world, bias towards joyfulness and thankfulness.

Lessons from Nike

• Designing is different from drawing, it's a process driven by research and empathy.
• Find people who have the skillset you lack and learn from them.
• Add personal layers to differentiate oneself, such as narrative.
• Build relationships outside of one's discipline to interface with decision makers.
• Methodical approach to life, thinking five steps ahead like chess.

Self-Reflection and Mastery

• Jason Mayden learned from Michael Jordan to turn weaknesses into strengths.
• He does a yearly inventory of what he did well, what he could have done better, and what he liked about the experience.
• Mayden writes down his thoughts in an introspective manner, inspired by stoic philosophy.
• He admires people who have mastered themselves, such as Marcus Aurelius and Bruce Lee.
• Mayden believes that controlling oneself and being methodical and specific about how to respond can make one immovable.

Non-Emotional Mindset

• Mayden admires Marcus Aurelius for not responding emotionally when parts of his army wanted to assassinate him.
• He believes that the greatest enemy is the conversation one has in their mind.
• Mayden's heroes are people who have mastered themselves, not a discipline or an industry.
• He thinks that the battle within is greater than the battle in the world.
• Mayden tells his kids that they can bend but not break, and that breaking is when they feel like they can't come back from something.

Positive Words and Healthy Debates

• Mayden focuses on making sure that the words that come out of his mouth bring life and don't destroy.
• He believes that rhetoric and learning how to have a healthy debate are no longer practiced.
• Mayden thinks that words leave a residue of positivity and negativity on the person and the place where they are said.
• He checks himself constantly to make sure that he brings life with his words.
• Mayden breaks his own patterns and reads books outside of his comfort zone to learn from others.

Consistency and Openness to Knowledge

• Mayden believes that there is a red thread that connects every single thing in this planet.
• He searches for consistency across multiple buckets of knowledge to realize that the human experience is a shared experience.
• Mayden is open to other people's opinions and doesn't reject knowledge.
• He reads books about different topics, such as how children succeed and quantitative easing, to find right brain and left brain knowledge.
• Mayden believes that there is something about different topics that exists in a way that's consistent.

Importance of Grit and Mastery

• Grit and determination lead to mastery.
• Both are necessary for success.
• Celebrating discovery and failure is important.
• Failure is a gift because it teaches what you don't know.
• There's no such thing as losing, only quitting.

Creating a Safe Environment for Failure

• Intentionally create a controlled environment for failure.
• Helps build resilience and determination.
• Positive self-talk is important when facing challenges.
• Encourage both grit and mastery, but reward and praise grit more.
• Failure is an opportunity to learn and improve.

The Importance of Introspection

• Introspection is a learned skill.
• Asking yourself questions is important for growth.
• Acknowledge criticism, even if you don't accept it.
• Use criticism as a learning opportunity.
• Be open to improving every day.

The Importance of Surrounding Yourself with the Best

• Surround yourself with people who are better than you.
• Everyone in your inner circle should have a skill you admire.
• Learn from those who are the best in their industry.
• Curate thoughts and put your own spin on them.
• Information is the greatest medium for growth.

Importance of Learning from Others

• Having a single focus and limited information leads to producing the same products repeatedly.
• Hanging out with people who have knowledge in areas where one lacks helps to pull unique inspiration.
• Learning about leadership from a retired general who was reading Marcus Aurelius' book.
• Leadership is not a position but a behavior that can be improved.
• Improving behavior is critical to doing anything great.

Watch the video on YouTube:
How to 3x Your Career | Jason Mayden on Impact Theory - YouTube